Arija A.'s Webshrine for Libre
Libre — living with minimal restrictions on sharing, creating, and adapting ideas, tools, and culture.
This shrine collects reflections, practical guidance, and resources for integrating libre principles into daily life.
# Philosophy and Values
Libre culture centres on freedom, self-determination, and respect for autonomy. While it is often associated with software, its principles extend to knowledge, creativity, communities, and everyday choices. Key values include collaboration, transparency, decentralisation, and conscious autonomy - empowering anyone to make informed, independent decisions.
# Ethics and Practical Application
Living libre means making ethical and practical choices that preserve freedom for yourself and others. This spans both everyday life and the tools you use:
- Choose privacy-conscious tools and habits - protect your data and respect others' autonomy
- Use open formats and interoperable systems - avoid lock-in and ensure flexibility
- Engage with communities that share knowledge openly and transparently
- Share what you know - teach, write guides, document processes, and help others participate freely
- Contribute thoughtfully - small bug fixes, translations, or documentation are high-impact, low-barrier ways to help
- Apply licences and permissions to encourage reuse and collaboration in both software and creative work
- Foster local or online meetups, workshops, and study groups to teach and learn collectively
# Software and Tools
Libre software and tools put these principles into practice, giving people real control over the tools they use:
- Operating Systems: Debian, Fedora, Gentoo, Arch
- Productivity: LibreOffice, OnlyOffice (Community), Joplin
- Web & Communication: Firefox, Tor Browser, Thunderbird, Mastodon, Signal
- Self-hosting: Nextcloud, PeerTube, Prosody, Discourse
- Development Tools: Git, GCC, Clang/LLVM, Python, Podman
- Multimedia: GIMP, Inkscape, Blender, Audacity
- Utilities: VLC, MPV, KeePassXC, WireGuard, rclone
# Licences
- GNU GPL v3 - strong copyleft for software
- GNU AGPL v3 - copyleft including network use
- MIT License - permissive, simple, broad reuse
- CC0 - public domain dedication
- CC BY-SA 4.0 - share-alike with attribution
- Unlicense - public-domain-style waiver
- WTFPL - do-what-you-want, minimal restrictions
- Other licenses @ Open Source Initiative
# How to Contribute
- Report sensible issues and suggest improvements
- Contribute documentation, translations, or small fixes
- Donate time, hosting, or money to projects you value
- Organise events or discussion groups
- Encourage institutions to adopt libre-friendly tools and practices
- Start sharing
# Resources
# Events and Gatherings
- FOSDEM - free European developer conference
- DebConf - Debian developer conference
- Chaos Communication Congress (CCC) - major hacker and tech gathering
- LibrePlanet Conference - FSF community conference
- GUADEC - GNOME project annual conference
- OSI Conferences - online and in-person events